During the month of May, the drought worsened and expanded a little as only a spattering of rain occurred across the area with the highest totals falling along and west of the Mississippi River. Actually, the area defined by severe drought (D2) only expanded by a few counties. The largest expansion was by the area defined by extreme drought (D3), which by the end of the month encompassed an area mainly along and east of Interstate 55 from Grenada to Jackson and along and north of Interstate 20 from Jackson to Meridian. Through May, the entire area within the drought experienced annual rainfall deficits between 12 and 16 inches, (15-25% of normal rainfall), with the driest conditions occurring across Eastern Mississippi.
By the end of May, crops across the state were beginning to feel the impact of the very dry conditions. At that point, some damage to crops had occurred with only small losses to yields expected. Extended drought conditions would make conditions worse with more substantial crop damage/losses if no rain occurred into the month of June.